Kat's Anecdote of a Prophylactic Double Mastectomy
Intro From Kelsey
Kat and I played softball together in college. She was always the one I was trying to out work (and she didn’t make it easy).
What comes to mind when I think of Kat is: deeply authentic, overflowing with joy (partnered with one distinguishable laugh), and a fighter. And somehow each of those attributes flow simultaneously through her.
Kat has always been brave and courageous. And this new fight brought out the warrior spirit in her once again. I know you'll be encouraged by Kat's words below. Enjoy, friends! 🌻
Kat's Anecdote
Hey! My name is Kat Sullo and I made the decision to live for Jesus when I was 16 years old. BEST decision of my life!! Right along with marrying the most incredible man I have ever known. Things that make me happy in life are my family, friends, the warm sun, beaches, coffee, and sports. My goal was to live an all around healthy life… Spiritually, physically mentally, and emotionally.
But being healthy didn’t look exactly like I thought it would for me…
My dad died of ALS when he was 58 years old, and his mom died of breast cancer when she was 32 years old.
I wasn’t raised eating well, but totally cleaned up my diet after finding out that I tested positive for BRCA 1 gene mutation. (The same mutation my gram had. It basically gave me up to an 87% chance of getting super aggressive breast cancer.)
Even with this not so amazing news, I felt strong spiritually with the Lord as my rock and refuge, trusting He would guide us. I felt strong physically from regular exercise and clean eating (like I’m talking a super strict, 0 sugar all the time, diet… not even raw honey or pure maple syrup to sweeten things!!)
This choice came from speaking with a naturopath who said that cancer feeds off of sugar so best to completely deprive my body from it in all forms. I went many months living like this, but the more research I did and the more oncologists and specialists I talked to, it seemed clear that with this gene disposition, even the “healthiest” people don’t always do so well when cancer does come. I didn’t feel like that intense of a diet was a healthy way to view food either… How much fruit sugar was safe before triggering that cancer development and growth?? That didn’t seem to be the answer for me. I did not feel so strong mentally or emotionally. I was left with some hard choices… Do I have monthly scans and wait for that cancer diagnosis? Do I have my breasts removed prophylactically? Do I do nothing and hope that I’m in that small percentage of people who do not end up with cancer?
My husband and I went to the only ONE who knows every detail of my body from the inside out for answers, and He showed us what was right for me. The Lord clearly opened doors and closed others. We prayed for peace and direction before going to each appointment. I didn’t love where He was leading me, but we trusted. September 18, 2024, I had my cancer free breasts removed, giving me a less than 1% chance of ever getting breast cancer.
Mentally, I feel much stronger post surgery! But I’ll be honest, emotionally this surgery has taken me for a loop. I have had some hard things to work through, and hard moments of sadness at how different things are now. It’s not always easy. We can do our absolute best to be healthy, but the reality is, there are just some things that are out of our control. That’s where I take refuge in a loving God who has my best interest in mind. People don’t get sick or hurt because they are being punished by a God who wants to smite them. These bad things happen because of sin entering the world. Sounds hopeless and horrible and, if it ended there, it would be! “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” Ephesians 2:4-5. We can have everlasting hope and confidence in Christ.
My new goal is not necessarily to just be healthy…but to bring HIM honor. I want all I do to represent Him well. I believe the Lord will use this trial for His glory.
Life isn’t always easy, but overall, I LOVE it! God has been so kind and so good to us. Truly, when we are weak, He is strong. I’m so thankful for my husband, my absolute best friend, and our 4 beautiful children who bring the perfect mix of chaos and joy to our lives.
I'm not sure what my future holds and how we will handle other possible surgical decisions where I also have elevated cancer risks…but one thing I know for sure, He will never leave me. Just as He showed us the way to get the preventative double mastectomy, I fully believe that God will show us our next steps as we keep searching and praying.
Recommendations (from Kat):
My husband and I are reading through the book “Parenting” by Paul David Tripp and it is changing my life! So much so that I wish I had read it before even having my own kids. I highly recommend if you have kids, want kids, or know kids.
